Monitoring Desk
ISLAMABAD/LAGOS: Nigerians go to the fresh elections on Saturday to elect a successor to President Muhammadu Buhari. Several hope the next future leader will steer Africa’s populous nation and the biggest economy on a fresh course after years of worsening violence and hardship.
The leading candidates in the most wide-open contest since Nigeria switched from military rule to democracy in 1999 are two political, former military persons from the two main political parties. A candidate from a major party who opinion polls suggest has the chance thanks to support from young voters.
Buhari, a former military general, is stepping down after serving the maximum eight years the constitution allows but failing to deliver his oath to bring back order and security across Nigeria, which is Africa’s prominent oil-producing nation.
More than 93 million citizens are registered to vote for the next future president and National Assembly (NA) members, and some 176,600 election polling stations would be open between 8:30 a.m. and 2:30 pm. Vote counting would begin as soon as polls close, and results would be posted outside election polling stations. The final tally of votes from the 36 states and the federal capital Abuja is expected within five days of voting.
The previous Nigerian elections
The run-up to a vote has been marred by violence, a pattern seen in the last Nigerian elections, with the killing of the senatorial candidate in the volatile southeast region
the latest series of serious incidents.
The election comes as Nigerians struggling to cope with the shortage of cash caused by a botched program to swap old banknotes for new ones that was wreaked havoc on citizens’ daily lives and led to scenes of violence at banks and cash machines.
The future president would have to grapple with issues ranging from rising inflation, energy shortages, and deep poverty to the insurgency in the northeast, industrial-scale oil theft in the south area, and rampant crime everywhere.
